


Lost At Sea

by samworth



Category: Numb3rs
Genre: Adventure, Case Fic, Ford Model A 1931, Friendship, Gen, Survival
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-23
Updated: 2017-05-29
Packaged: 2018-11-04 00:14:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,414
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10978350
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/samworth/pseuds/samworth
Summary: Driving a classic car, Larry was worried about damages and maybe the missing seat belt. But he never expected this.





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Mega07ghost](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Mega07ghost).



> Season 4 team fic in 5 chapters. Postings will be every weekday until complete. No posts on Saturday or Sunday.
> 
> Special thanks to ancientmaverick for beta reading! Thank you very much! All remaining mistakes are my own.

* * *

_4,320,446 Model A's_

_3,427 miles shoreline_

_2 friends_

_1 dinghy_

* * *

"Come here, or he dies!"

Larry remained frozen, trapped between his desire to help Colby and Colby's order to run away.

Two men blocked his path to his car, but the way back to CalSci was still open.

"Come here."

The dark-haired man repeated his order. He shook his gun in emphasis. His blonde friend held Colby in a strong grip with a knife against his throat. Colby's right arm was trapped in a sling. He had hurt his shoulder by tackling a running suspect in his last case. At least Megan hadn't been hurt in the raid. But Colby's injury made him an easy target.

Larry glanced back to the safety of the building behind him.

"Doc run!" Colby forced the words from his lips despite the knife threatening his life. The sharp blade had already started to draw blood. They wouldn't hesitate to kill him.

Larry pressed his lips together. With a last look around for help he took a tiny step forward. "Don't hurt him."

"Come here!"

Behind his beautiful Ford Model A, an old and ugly dark gray van was waiting. The man with dark hair pointed with his gun to the back door. "In there!"

Larry opened the door and climbed in. He only had time to half turn around as Colby was shoved forward and collided with him.

With a thump, he crashed to the dirty floor, Agent Granger on top of him.

They both groaned in pain as the door was shut behind them.

Colby knew that he needed to act now and forced his hurt body to sit up. But before he could do something, the side door opened and the blonde guy entered. He had taken the gun and pointed at Colby.

"Don't try anything. I cannot miss in this distance."

The agent sat back down, pressing his lips together in pain while Larry slowly sat up.

"What do you want?" Colby growled hiding his pain and using it as threat.

It worked. The blonde man visibly flinched. But then he put back on a brave face. "Don't worry. You will see soon enough."

*******

Charlie was busy grading papers. He should be impressed by his students' ability to always guess wrongly, but he would have loved if they at least tried to use math.

Rubbing at his forehead, he lamented the need for a new approach for the next generation of students.

Megan knocked against the door-frame, a welcome interruption. "Hello Charlie, have you seen Larry?"

"Larry? No, I haven't seen him." He looked around as if Larry could be hidden in his office. It wouldn't the first time, Larry had used his office to hide from his love life. "Do you need anything?"

Shaking her head, Megan explained: "No, I'd hoped he would be here. We had a date."

He smiled and gave a little shrug. "It's Larry. He was probably distracted. He'll remember."

Megan returned the smile and sauntered in the room. "I hope so."

She was dressed in a dark blue dress. They clearly had a special date. Too bad that Larry was easily confused about time and space despite being an astrophysicist.

"You haven't seen Colby by any chance, have you?" Megan added. "Your brother is looking for him."

"Colby is missing, too?" This was new. Neither Don nor the team had called.

She grimaced. Apparently Don was annoyed again and not hiding it.

"Colby is on medical leave but couldn't stay away from our case." Megan traced the corner of his desk with her fingertips. "So he wanted to help, and Don gave in and sent him some files to look through. But now we can't find him. David had wanted to bring Colby his new cell phone because his last one had been destroyed in the raid, but he wasn't home. Without a cell, we can't trace him."

Charlie could image how Don would take this. "Good luck then."

"For whom?"

"Hmm," Charlie took a moment to think. "Colby."

Megan laughed. "You're right. He is going to need it." Then she turned serious again while striking her long hair back behind her ear. "If you see-"

"I'll send Larry your way. Or Colby." She nodded and went to the door as Charlie called her back: "And Megan? Larry is fine. Don't worry."

*******

Colby tried to follow the route the van was taking, but after the sixteenth left turn he had to give up. He had lost his points of reference, and through the tinted windows he couldn't see any landmarks. He wasn't even sure their kidnappers were aware where they were going.

"Where are we going?" he asked.

"It doesn't concern you," the blonde guy snarled back.

"Oh, I think it does."

"No-"

Before the argumentation could get out of hand, Larry intervened. "The van's current destination is the harbor. We're still traveling east and therefore to the sea."

Colby stared at the professor. "You don't remember where you leave your clothes, but you know this?" He shook his head.

"Yes. There is a well-established procedure for calculating -"

"Shut up!" the driver barked. "Marc, we need to think what to do with him. He wasn't part of the plan."

"I am thinking," his blonde friend growled back.

Larry looked to Colby, who shrugged.

"I kinda messed up their little kidnapping scheme. They had been hiding in your car, and I interrupted them." He touched his bloody throat. "They didn't like my intervention."

"You messed up everything!" the blonde, apparently named Marc, complained. "It would have worked perfectly."

Larry stared around with big eyes. He was pale. Whispering he said to Colby: "I guess I need to thank you then for destroying their plan."

"You could have thanked me by running away," Colby answered and started to pull on his sling. "Help me out of this thing!"

"Don't," Marc countered. "I really don't want to deal with both of his arms." He fingered an area around his eyes. Going by the proud smile, Colby was responsible for the developing black eye.

"Marc, we need to do something." The driver kept shooting looks to the back instead of the street.

Colby almost hoped he would crash or break a law so a LAPD unit could pull him over.

"Do you still have your pills?"

"What? You want to get high now? We are in trouble-"

"Not for me, for them. Then we can deal with them."

Larry couldn't follow the back and forth. He only knew that he been abducted and that an unstable young man held a gun on him and his friend. He wished himself back to the International Space Station. The world was certainly more peaceful in Outer Space.

Colby, meanwhile, had no problem following these two amateurs. Without his hurt shoulder and the pain medication he had taken, they wouldn't have stood a chance. But between his bruises, the pain, and the painkillers, his reflexes had slowed.

He cursed his sense of responsibility that had forced him to leave his gun locked at home. If he had carried it, they wouldn't have been taken. Granted, he probably would be in deep trouble for operating a gun under the influence of painkillers, but still. He thoughts turned darker and darker. He didn't have any good memories of harbors or the sea.

The car stopped.

Their driver grabbed something from the front seat and climbed into the back.

Colby sighed wearily. They had obviously come to a consensus. And he knew he wouldn't like it.

"Okay, this is what we are going to do. You are going to take these pills, and then we go back to our plan."

"What pills?" Larry asked.

But Colby flatly refused on principle. "No."

"Look, we don't want to hurt you, but if you refuse, we have to."

"You're going to open the door, and we are going to walk away. This is your only good choice."

The blonde, Marc, laughed. "Funny. You're a funny guy."

Without warning, the driver lunged toward Larry, but Colby threw himself between them. Marc added his weight to the brawl and effectively ended it by shoving Colby hard.

Colby hit the side of the van with his bad shoulder. The pain stole his breath, and he blacked out for a moment.

As he came back, he realized he was lying on the ground seeing stars he had never seen in the night sky.

Precious minutes went by until he had recovered enough to sit back up. Rotating around until he could lean against the back door left him breathless.

Larry lay on the floor with closed eyes. Colby swallowed hard as he stared at his chest until he could see it rising again. He hadn't wanted to endanger Larry.

His eyes searched the interior for their attacker. They still sat behind the front seat and at the side door.

"What have you done to him?" He could only whisper, his shoulder still shooting arrows of pain through his whole body. He started to shake in pain.

They looked at each other as if they really didn't know what to do. Colby confirmed his first assessment. They were amateurs who got lucky.

"He is just sleeping," the dark-haired man answered after a moment hesitation. Despite the poor lighting, Colby already knew that he would be able to identify both of them easily. He only needed a phone or a LAPD unit and they would be history and his night would be nothing more than a bad dream.

"Sleeping?"

"Yeah," Marc affirmed. "Take this."

He threw a bottle of pills at him.

It hit his chest and then fell down as Colby let it roll off him. "No." There was no way he would take anything they gave him.

"Do it," the blonde started to smile while pulling out his knife again. He wiped off the blood with his shirt, Colby's blood. Then he put the blade against Larry's undefended throat. "Or he dies."

Colby bit his lip, thinking. The little cut on his own neck smarted, but compared to his shoulder it hadn't even registered in his brain. Even if these amateurs didn't know how to cut a throat the right way, they still could hurt or kill Larry. On the other hand, he didn't know what he was supposed to take and how it would counteract with his own prescription.

He grabbed the bottle and glanced at the label. In the darkness of the van he couldn't read it.

"Now!"

Glancing again to Larry, Colby decided to risk it rather than watching Larry dying now. "Okay." He took the directed amount of pills and put them in his mouth.

"We will know if you don't swallow them. Then we still can kill him."

Colby growled. For amateurs they knew how to pretend to be smart or they've watched enough TV. He swallowed one and hid the other beneath his tongue.

Then he watched them waiting. Suddenly they started to blur. Colby blinked trying to sharpen his focus, but his eyes closed on their own.

He slumped forward.

"Don't fight the lullaby," was the last thing he heard.

*******

Megan walked casually over the empty campus always hoping to run into Larry. But the only one she ran into was her boss.

"Don? Are you here for Charlie?" She pointed with her finger over her shoulder. "He is still in his office."

"No," Don shook his head and gave her a tired sigh. "Colby called a taxi. And they drove him here."

"Here? To CalSci?" Megan had expected Colby anywhere except the campus.

"Yes. According to the driver, he had some files in his hand."

Apparently, Don had passed annoyed and gone to worried, or he wouldn't be here himself looking for Colby. They all were still shaken from the shout of pain that had alerted them to Colby's position on their last raid.

"He wanted to help. Maybe he had found something for Charlie." It was the most logical conclusion.

"Hmmm," Don looked at his watch.

"But Charlie hasn't seen him," Megan said as an after thought.

Don nodded. He had probably called Charlie after she had left him. "Did you find Larry?"

"Not yet. Why?"

"There's his car." Don pointed to the entrance.

With a smile, Megan pivoted on her heels and marched to her target. "Let's go."

The car was unlocked. It should worry Megan, but it wasn't uncommon for Larry to forget to lock his car. It was either a blessing or a curse that he couldn't lock his car with a button on his key.

She bent down to look into the classic 1931 Ford hoping for a clue where her wayward boyfriend could be.

Don walked around the car to the driver side. Suddenly he slowed down.

Megan straightened. "Did you find something?"

Giving her a short glance, Don bent down and picked some papers from the ground.

"Probably something a student has lost?" Megan guessed, but as she saw his face, she had the sinking feeling that it wasn't a missing term paper.

Circling around the car, Megan looked over Don's shoulder to study the papers. "This is from our case."

"It's the files we gave Colby," Don agreed.

"This isn't good."

Both looked around trying to find a sincere and harmless explanation for Colby to leave important papers on the ground.

But there was nothing. In case of an accident, Colby would have made sure that somebody called them. Failing this, his ID would have warranted a call to the FBI field office.

After a complete sweep of the surrounding area, Megan and Don's eyes locked.

They were both now officially worried.

"I am going to call it in," Don announced as he pulled out his cell.

Megan bit her lip, trying to come up with a good explanation as to why Colby's files were next to Larry's car and neither of them anywhere near.

There wasn't any.

"Do you think they were after Colby and Larry was just at the wrong place, wrong time?"

"We don't even know for sure that Larry or Colby were here," Don warned, "We have to check the video tapes." The files underlined the assumption that Colby was the target. Hopefully Larry only missed time and space and hadn't been around. Their job was dangerous enough without worrying about endangering their friends.

Megan nodded. But deep down she knew that Larry and Colby were in trouble.

*******

Colby shivered in his sleep and yearned for his blanket. He didn't remember going to bed, but he was sleeping.

He frowned. How could he sleep and be thinking? There was something important. He hadn't gone to bed. He had been on his way to CalSci.

Colby jerked upright.

Everything wobbled. He closed his eyes again as his last meal threatened to return. Taking deep breaths, he waited until the world stilled again.

He remembered.

"Larry? Professor?"

A cool breeze made him shiver. The wind brought a distinct smell. He knew that smell. But this couldn't be, he couldn't smell the ocean.

Carefully, he opened his eyes again and looked around. It was dark, and he rubbed his eyes to verify that he could still see.

His right arm was still in his sling, and he cursed again fleeing suspects and ER doctors who'd restricted his movements.

As his eyes had adapted to the darkness, he could see stars above him, a lot of stars. The pitch in his stomach grew.

"What?"

The boat swayed with sudden movement.

Boat? For the first time Colby looked down, cataloging his direct environment. He was definitive on a little boat. More specific, it was a dinghy.

"Ow, ow, my head."

As Larry complained about his headache, Colby realized that he still could taste the pills beneath his tongue. He spat them out in his left hand.

They were dissolved but not complete. Maybe that was the reason he was spared the headache.

"Are you okay, Larry?"

"Where are we?"

"We're in a dinghy," Colby remarked.

Larry rubbed at his head. "Why?"

"Beats me."

The professor lowered his hand and looked around astonished. "We were kidnapped."

Colby snorted and boat echoed his movement. "Yes, I remember. Thank you very much." It shouldn't be a surprise. He had made enough enemies, but Colby couldn't imagine who could be behind it.

They were alone in their little dinghy.

Colby swept his gaze across the horizon in a slow 360° circle. As far as he could see, there was only water.

The painful realization settled in his stomach.

They were alone in the middle of the ocean.

* * *

_tbc_


	2. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to ancientmaverick for beta reading. All remaining mistakes are my own.

David entered Charlie's office quickly. Don and Megan were already waiting for him. Amita and Charlie had set up monitors and laptops.

He held up a flash drive with the needed footage. "We are also getting the video tapes from the entrance and parking lot."

"Good," Don said. He pointed to Charlie's laptop where they were already watching surveillance tapes.

"What is this?"

"This is a special camera from the Social Science department," Amita explained. "They are conducting a field study for human behavior. It's -"

"There's Colby." Shooting Amita an apologetic smile for the interruption, Megan returned her focus on the tape.

Don and David came nearer to get a better look.

They could see that Colby had his files in his left hand, the right remaining in his sling. David would have bet that the sling wouldn't stay on a single hour, but apparently Colby's shoulder hurt a lot more than he had admitted.

Next to Larry's car, he stopped and looked down with a frown. Then he tried the car door. Suddenly it swung open from the inside, and a man jumped out. Colby threw the files down and jerked his right hand going for his hip where his gun would have been.

The pained grimace was easily visibly on the surveillance tape. Despite his pain and the sudden appearance of a second man in a van, Colby fought like a lion, hitting his assailant with strong and precise hits.

One of the two men he got good in the head near his eye with a strong elbow, and for a moment it looked as if he would hold his own. But he was outnumbered, and they were healthy. They overpowered him as they got Colby in a choke hold and pulled a knife.

David held his breath, and Don pressed lips together. It was their nightmare, an unexpected attack while hurt and vulnerable.

"There's Larry." Megan pointed to the sole figure appearing on screen.

They watched in horror how the attacker used Colby as leverage and forced the two men into their van.

Megan balled her fists as they drove off.

"Stop," Don ordered, and Charlie hit pause.

"Can you get a license plate?" he asked his brother and pointed at the grainy image.

"Not from this tape," Amita said, "It's too far away. But I know that the parking lot has a camera positioned to scan for plates."

Don nodded. "Get it."

Amita jumped up and went to her laptop. It was Larry, and the fastest way to the tapes was the central server.

Don turned to Megan. She looked shocked. He changed his direction and focus on David, ordering: "Alert LAPD and get a BOLO for the van. We need to find it."

David acknowledged the order but placed a hand on Megan's shoulder before he left. "We'll find them."

She nodded. But her eyes remained a second longer on the last frame of a video showing the abduction of her boyfriend.

It was Chrystal Hoyle all over again. Except this time she was forced to watch tapes, and she was the one condemned to always be a step behind.

She swallowed her fear and straightened up. She had a job to do.

*******

Colby had scanned and checked the little dinghy in under a minute. But he didn't want to miss anything in the dark, so he went around again.

"Why would anybody leave us out on the sea?" Larry repeated his question again, all the while holding onto the sides as if he could stop the movement of the dinghy.

"I don't know." Colby had given up trying to find a better answer. He was more interested in how to get back to dry land and find these two guys.

The dinghy was made out of rubber and completely devoid of supplies. They didn't even have paddles or life jackets.

Colby crawled back to Larry, who swallowed hard. He touched his shoulder. "Are you okay, professor?"

"I can assure you that only my mind is worried. My body has remained unhurt. But I have a tendency to get seasick. This isn't a comfortable experience."

"Just give me a warning and aim over the side," Colby advised. At least he didn't get seasick. "Breath through your mouth and try to relax."

"Not even in the monastery was I able to still my thoughts. And now my thoughts keep straying away to a lot of unpleasant places. So I cannot guarantee a success."

Colby coughed to hide his laugh. Then he patted Larry's shoulder. "Check your pockets, please."

"My pockets?"

"You don't want to think unpleasant thoughts, and we need to establish what we have to work with."

"If you hope for a cell phone, I have to disappoint you."

"I hope for anything." Colby started to search his own pockets with his left hand. He wanted to ditch the sling, but since he had awakened, so had the pain in his shoulder. The big question was if he could swim with his bad shoulder.

He stopped his search. Out of the corner of his eyes he stared at Larry contemplating a terrifying thought. "You can swim, right?" If he couldn't, there was no way he could keep Larry and himself above water.

Larry nodded. "I know every law that is needed to stay afloat. This isn't rocket science. If you want to travel to a space station, you need to be prepared for everything, and a great many of these preparations are done in the water."

"Good. Good." Colby returned to his check. He found some gum, a paperclip, and his keys. He felt his pocketknife in his right trouser pocket, but couldn't reach it with his left hand. It was the wrong time to have a bum shoulder. Why did he have to tackle this guy? He should have left him running until he couldn't run anymore.

He sighed. In his sling, he found his sunglasses where had put them to have a free hand. Contemplating the glasses in his hand, he was suddenly reminded of a song from his youth.

He shook his head, trying to chase away the catchy tune about wearing sunglasses at night. He really didn't need that kind of distraction. "What do you have?"

"A calculator and paper and pen. I guess they weren't interested in my notes about the dynamic-"

"Sorry, doc, but right now I am also not interested." Sighing again, Colby swallowed his pride and bit the bullet. "Can you either open the sling or get the knife out of my right pocket, please?"

Larry stared at him with wide eyes.

"There is a Swiss Army knife that I can't reach with my left hand."

"Oh, of course."

After enough swaying that Colby actually feared they would capsize, Larry pulled out the knife and a fresh handkerchief with a shout of triumph.

"Okay, let's take a look at what we have," Colby began playing over any remaining embarrassment. "Pocket knife – check; paper and pen – check; paperclips and a handkerchief - check."

They shared a look. It was indeed a pitiful list.

Colby bit his lip. He continued with his checklist: "Zero water - check. Zero food - check. Zero radio - check. Zero navigation - check. Zero engine - check."

The sound of the ocean at night hid the silence between the two men as they contemplate their terrifying situation.

"Based on current evidence, we have a lot of zeros in our equation on the side of importance."

Colby snorted at Larry's observation. "Isn't binary code zeros and ones? So where is our 'one' for important things?" he wondered, leaning back.

Larry followed his example and lay down.

"We have 'one' very big problem."

*******

The smell of smoked weed hung heavenly in the air. Mixed in was the odor of cheap alcohol and even cheaper cigarettes.

Don, with Megan on his heels, forced his way through the house. David came from the back door.

He couldn't believe that these guys had taken their own car. They even had left it parked in front of the house. With the plates and positive ID of the owner as the driver from the video, it was easy to get a warrant for Ronny Shawn.

"FBI!"

They went through the house room by room until they found both suspects in the cellar, smoking pot.

"You are under arrest."

One of them, Don easily identified him as Ronny Shawn despite the half-light, looked up with glassy eyes. "Great, we are just finishing our joint. We had to work really hard for them ... can't let them get wasted now."

His friend laughed, as if anything about this was funny.

Before he could lose his patience, Megan beat him to it. She grabbed the joint and put it into the nearest beer bottle.

She towered over the stoned men. "Where are they? Where are Special Agent Granger and Larry Fleinhardt?"

"Do you always glow so bright?" the blonde man asked.

Megan didn't hesitate before grabbing the first man, twisting his arm behind his back and roughly cuffing him. David took the second one, who had been identified as Marc Samuelson.

After securing them, Megan leaned again forward into their personal space. "Do want to see something really bright?"

"Sure." They were still all smiles and high.

Don put his gun into its holster. Their suspects weren't bright at all.

"It's red. And sticky. And coming out of your body if you don't tell me-"

"Megan," Don warned and took a step around empty beer bottles so he could pull her back if necessary.

"They abducted Larry and Colby. They are still wearing the same clothing!"

She grabbed the gray shirt and pulled it under the light to show the brown stains on it. Don knew whose blood had resulted in the dark red spots.

He let his gaze wander across the room taking in the garbage, the old pizza boxes and the journals, games and drugs. "And they're too intoxicated to be useful."

"We're not stoned. We're just enjoying our freedom."

Don ignored them and continued to fix Megan with a glare. She let go and stalked from the room with angry strides.

"Past tense," Don said to the two men. "You were enjoying your freedom. Now you're going to prison - for a very long time."

Nodding to David, he followed Megan upstairs. They had better chances trying to find evidence instead of talking to them. Megan was a good enough agent to recognize this.

As Don reached the kitchen, Megan was already taking it apart.

*******

Larry shivered in the cool night. He was glad to still have his jacket, compared to Colby who only wore a long-sleeved shirt.

He watched his friend shivering. "We should try to conserve body heat," Larry said.

Colby glanced to Larry. His muscles screamed in pain with every shiver that was needed to keep his organs and blood warm enough to survive.

"Ordinarily, I'd joke that you were trying to make a pass at me. But considering the circumstances…" Colby nodded.

Larry shrugged off his jacket.

"What are you doing?"

"My jacket is the only thing we can use as blanket." He lay back down and patted the space beside him as he arranged his jacket as blanket.

"We should keep watch in case there's a boat," Colby argued.

"In this dark, we will hear a ship long before we see it. Besides, without light we don't have any chance to call attention to us."

Another shiver ended his attempt at an argument, and he slid nearer to Larry. The jacket was still warm. His fingers itched as the warmth relaxed the painfully contracted muscle in his shoulder.

Colby tried to think of a new plan. Their situation would probably be written in a report as 'challenging'. But he preferred good old Army synonyms - like FUBAR.

When daylight came, they could maybe see land and start to swim there. He frowned. Of course, the sun would bring it's own problems in the form of intense heat.

He shivered again.

"I don't think the cold is going to be a problem come day."

Larry had the same thought. "But we also do not want to develop hypothermia while waiting."

Colby rolled his eyes. With the added warmth, his fighting spirit returned, and he sat up again. "I don't want to wait. Period. Neither for the day, nor for a rescue."

The professor patiently patted on the space next to him. "Don't waste the warmed rubber. It took precious energy from your body to warm it."

Lying back down, Colby sighed. "How do you know so much about hypothermia?"

Larry shrugged. "It's cold in space."

He had survived the most daring enterprise that humanity had ever attempted. And was now left to die on the ocean. This wasn't poetic; it was just cruel.

Colby's thoughts didn't fare much better. He had spent years as an undetected triple agent and as his cover was blown, the friend he hadn't wanted had saved his life again.

And now he was swaying on the ocean as, again, an unlikely friend had tried to save his life.

It was almost unthinkable, but the two men seemed to be after Larry. For what? For only eating white food or not having a house? Maybe it had something to do with the monastery. Had the monks been that annoyed by Larry's incessant questions?

Suddenly Larry interrupted this sincere silence: "I wonder what this is supposed to be about?"

Speaking of. All Colby really wanted was a painkiller and a warm bed. Shrugging with his left shoulder alone, he evaded the question. "Who knows?"

*******

Don waited for the search to be finished and until their suspects were secured and Mirandized.

"Who do you think they were after? Colby or Larry?" David crossed his arms. He had found both illegal and legal drugs but no hint where Colby and Larry could be.

"Astrophysicist or FBI agent? I would put money on the agent, but nobody targeting Colby would have waited at CalSci. This doesn't add up."

"Maybe they followed him," Megan guessed while waving a pile of cash. "They have a lot of money lying around. It still has bands on it from the bank. We'll need to go ask some questions as soon as they open. "

Don nodded.

"Amita is sure that the van hadn't been following Colby," David reported. "What about old enemies?"

"I have already asked for any files, threatening letters, or death threats." Don rubbed at his forehead. "I even informed the appropriate people in the Army."

"I can't image that Larry has many enemies," David said.

Don pushed away from the wall. "He doesn't need many, he just needs one. Come on, maybe they sobered up a bit."

He entered the so-called living room where Ronny Shawn and Marc Samuelson had been put. His father would have called it a waste disposal.

Before Don could ask a question, Ronny Shawn asked: "We're not really going to prison, are we? You were joking, right?"

Don paused, astonished that he could be still surprised even after all these years as an FBI agent.

He shared a look with Megan and David. "No. I am not joking."

His prisoners paled. That was good. Maybe they had a chance to obtain a location or at least some information.

"Where are Agent Granger and Professor Fleinhardt?" Megan repeated her question. "If they're alive, you may see the outside of a prison again before you die of old age."

This time, their last remaining brain cells started to work.

"We left them at sea. Like we were told," Ronny Shawn rushed to say.

"At sea? Where exactly?"

Marc Samuelson shrugged. "I don't know. There was only water around."

Shawn hissed: "Of course there was only water. It was the open sea."

Don raised his voice to stop the babbling. "Who told you to leave them at sea? Who hired you?"

"We were only supposed to take the guy from the car. But we didn't touch the car. The car is fine. If that is what you're worried about..."

Megan gasped as Don and David stepped back in surprise.

"Larry? Larry was your target?"

* * *

_TBC_


	3. Chapter Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to ancientmaverick for beta reading. All remaining mistakes are my own.

"... and there is the star constellation Hunter."

Colby's suggestion to fight Larry's queasiness by stargazing had worked quite well.

"I remember." Colby refused to move his arms out of the little warmth Larry's jacket provided. "I can even find the North Star."

"You know stars?" The professor had never thought about whom else would have taken interested in stars and constellations. Of course, after he had met Megan and her ability to share joy with him, he should have adapted his prejudices.

"Sure. Basic survival training in the Army. LandNav by stars and landmarks. On dry land I can use them to find my way to the nearest unit, the target, or if all else fails: home."

Larry nodded. Stars were always his home or his guide to his home in astrophysics. He didn't share the need for a place, but he could share the way with Colby. "Did you know that stars were the main source of navigation for centuries? Before maps and GPS and satellites. These helpful tools took away a basic way to communicate with our surrounding cosmos."

Colby laughed. "I'd be more interested in finding out where we are right now. I'd need a map and a compass for navigation on land. Without landmarks, I'm lost."

"Oh, I can take an educated guess. Not through navigation, but through knowledge of which stars and constellations are visible anywhere on the planet at any given time. Would this be helpful?"

Colby shots upwards. "Helpful? This would be great. What do you need?"

Slowly sitting up, Larry rubbed at his forehead. "I need the date and time. And then some time to think. Do you have a precise time?"

The agent laughed. "I wear my watch on my left wrist. I still have it." He gave Larry time and date, sending silent appreciation to his mother for the gift. She had always loved his sense of adventure. Her birthday presents had reflected this. Now he was glad that he had light on his watch.

A strange yearning returned to his chest as he and Larry lay back down.

When was the last time he had called his mother or talked to her? Had he brushed her off? True, her problems paled in comparison to his own, but she was his mother.

Shaking off his dark thoughts about missed opportunities and hurtful behaviors, Colby tackled his most serious problem. "So? Where are we?"

Larry took a long time to answer. Then he scratched his chin. The sound was unnaturally loud despite the sounds of the ocean.

Checking and rechecking their position, he always came to the same conclusion. "We are several miles away from the nearest shore."

"Then we need to paddle-"

Larry shook his head and patted Colby's good arm. "This would be a futile effort even with two healthy arms. The current and prevailing winds out here are just too strong."

Colby bit his lip and swallowed the first response that came to mind. "I'd rather do something than wait."

Turning his head so that their noses were almost touching, Larry responded with an unusual conviction. "We are doing something. We are saving strength. Sometimes we need to wait and not run to reach the goal."

Colby was the first to look away. They wouldn't be having this argument if the professor had just done what he'd been told. "You should have run."

"I was sure they would have killed you."

Laughing bitterly, Colby couldn't stop himself: "And now? Now they've left both of us to die."

"But we are still alive. Not everything is lost. Everything is never lost as long as we continue to value human life."

"It's my job to die if necessary."

Larry nodded. "This is true. But this time it wasn't necessary. They could have killed me right after you. Or they could have abducted me, and now I would be alone out here, and you would be dead."

These were all possibilities, but Colby also knew the other options. He could have gotten help, he could have informed the team when he noticed something wrong, or maybe their attackers would have done something to attract attention. A lot of things could have happened but didn't, and thinking about it wouldn't help them now.

He closed his eyes trying to force the pain and frustration from his mind.

But Larry wasn't finished.

"The human life should not be discounted. Valuing one life above another is always going to be the downfall of a society."

"Big words. They just don't matter on the front line." Colby had seen firsthand the calculation about casualties and the casual words that marked them like 'collateral damage'.

"Which is the problem of today, will be the problem of tomorrow, and has been the problem of yesterday."

"Maybe. But you still should have run, then Don and David would be already informed and searching for me."

"I am sure that our absence has already been noticed. I was on my way to Megan."

"Really? That's great." Megan on the search for her lover that stood her up - he should expect her to be right around the corner. Except the sea had no corners for Megan to be around. "Do you think they are asking Charlie to help searching for us?"

"Of course."

Colby relaxed again. "So how long is it going to take?"

"Charles has a remarkable mind. But trying to find a little boat on the ocean is going to be difficult." Larry was tempted to say impossible, but he had heard the sharp intake of breaths that marked the returning pain. He should not remove every hope so early in their fight.

"It can't be that hard. I'm sure he knows people with satellites. He'll come up with a formula and then whoosh! They're here." Colby smiled sadly. He knew this would never happen, but he could hope. Trying to image his rescue was lifting his spirits better than trying to imagine his death.

"A boat this size will all but impossible to spot with satellites," Larry cautioned.

Colby knew this, of course. He had worked with enough satellite photos to know - trying to spot a terrorist hideout on satellite photos was endlessly tiring.

He knew the truth: it was not all but impossible. It was impossible.

He sighed.

They were in for the long haul.

*******

Charlie stood nervously at the door to the conference room. He opened and closed his hands in a helpless gesture while sending silent pleas for help to Amita and his brother.

He didn't know how to deal with this Megan.

"Can't you just develop an algorithm to find them?" Megan asked. She hadn't taken it well when he had told his brother that he didn't have enough data.

Don pushed off the central table and took a step in direction between his agent and his brother. "Megan..."

But Megan ignored him by sending Charlie an accusing glare. "You did it for me."

"That was a limited area with limited exits and a definable time frame," Charlie argued. "If your information is correct, and Larry and Colby were left at sea, then I need more data. If you maybe find the boat that left them, I might be able to calculate the fuel consumption to estimate a possible travel distance. But that isn't accurate enough to develop a search pattern. And if they used wind or solar, it's all but impossible."

"Charlie," Don grabbed his shoulder and pulled him to an over-sized map at the wall. "We can get the Coast Guard and every police boat out there, but we need a place to start looking. Something that won't get me laughed out of the room."

Knowing it was a long shot, he'd already contacted the Coast Guard, but without more data, no one was going to use resources in a wild goose chase. Until then, they were relying on the radio to inform other boats to be on the look out for anything unusual.

Charlie shook his head. "Without a starting point, I can't help. Wind, current, size of the boat, speed, weight – there are a dozen variables we don't have. I am sorry. It's Larry. I am trying but I can't use data that isn't there."

Don sighed and let go of his brother, patting him on the shoulder. "It's okay."

He directed his brother to the door.

"No it's not okay," Megan interrupted blocking Charlie's path. "I thought Larry was your friend. We need -"

"He is my friend!" Charlie talked right over Megan. It was an implied accusation Megan shouldn't have made. But the stress was getting to everybody.

Pulling out the boss-card, Don stopped the confrontation before it could spiral out of control. Sleep hadn't happened in a while, and the worry about their case and Colby had already taken a lot of energy. He issued an order. "Go home, Megan. I'll call the moment we have something."

She forced herself to relax. "I want to stay. I need to stay."

Don bit his lip. He knew what he would do in her shoes was counter to what he was saying. "Go home. Eat something, get clothes that don't smell like weed, and then come back. Think about who would or could target Larry. We need a suspect and a new lead."

He pointed his finger at his brother. "Same goes for you. Go home, eat and sleep or do math, but think about why Larry could be targeted. If you think of any reason, call me. "

Hopefully, sending both home for a while would restore some peace. He watched them leave, and then Don went over to David.

They all needed sleep. He hoped that Larry and Colby were okay enough to wait for them. They were coming. They just needed a little more time.

*******

"So where are we drifting to?" Colby asked at dawn. He enjoyed the first light on the horizon that promised him warmth and sight, despite knowing that it also would bring heat and a glaring sun.

He waited, but didn't receive an answer.

"Larry?"

Glancing to his right, Colby found his friend awake and alive. He was just taking his time to answer.

"Going by my limited tools to precisely calculate our location, I am comfortable with estimating that we are drifting out to the open sea."

Colby snorted. "We determined that. But where exactly? I don't want to end up in China."

Larry's long pauses were not good for Colby's nerves. "That is highly unlikely."

The relieved sigh was clearly genuine. "Good."

The professor frowned as he tried to think of a reason for the obvious relief. Agent Granger had never seemed afraid of boats or the ocean. But, well, China…

"You don't have good memories about boats traveling to China, do you?"

Colby squashed the memories of his last extended stay on the ocean. For years, he had enjoyed the gentle swaying of the water as it had reminded him of home. But now… Now he could only see the face of his torturer, the waves doing nothing to quell his nausea. He could almost feel the stifling heat from that day.

He regretted bringing China up as a possibility. But he owed the professor an answer. "I died on that boat. If not there, I would have died in China. So no. I don't really care to end up there."

Larry, to his credit, didn't offer any empty platitudes.

Instead, he allowed a moment of silence until Colby had enough control back over his voice and expression to risk turning to face Larry.

He found him looking right back. Giving him a small smile, he reminded him of the most important part of this journey. "And you were saved by your friends who believed in you."

Colby turned away. Apparently he didn't quite have complete control of his emotions, yet. Or his voice wouldn't sound so rough. "There is that."

Colby was glad to face the dawn as Larry added his last piece of wisdom.

"You were worth their effort."

*******

"I have a lead."

Megan hurried from the elevator to Don's desk.

"Didn't I send you home?" Rubbing at his tired eyes, he looked up to Megan. After reading several times the files of their kidnappers Marc Samuelson and Ronny Shawn, he still hadn't found a new lead. They were petty criminals who somehow had gotten entangled in a mess they couldn't really explain.

They couldn't even remember which harbor and which pier they had used. Just that their employer had left precise instruction what they were supposed to do. But they couldn't agree what these instructions had entailed.

Unfortunately, their memories didn't contain useful hints about their employer They had found him on the internet. And he had paid them in cash. But they couldn't remember anything else. No amount of pressure had helped their memories.

It surprised him that they had found back to their house. The only useful thing they had to add was that they had drugged Colby and Larry. At least they were positive that the two were still alive when they'd abandoned them.

It was a small consolation, but Don would take it.

Unfortunately, they could only remember that their employer was a man they had found on the internet. But they couldn't remember where. No amount of pressure had helped their memories.

If Megan had a lead, it would be their first real chance after identifying the car and plates.

She gave him a chipper smile. Her new clothes proved she had been home and changed.

"You did, and I thank you." She held up several papers. "I went home. Sometimes Larry uses my address as his mailing address if he doesn't want to use his box at CalSci. Guess what I've found in the mailbox."

Don was suddenly wide awake. "A ransom note?"

"No, letters." She pointed to the conference room.

"Megan," Don started, but Megan was already gone. "Letters are normal."

He staggered to his feet. He needed more coffee. After a visit in the break room, Don felt fit enough to enter the conference room.

Megan had already used every available space to spread letters and notes.

"I found letters dating back months, increasing in frequency and escalating in tone asking, demanding, pleading with Larry to sell his car. "

Don slowly walked from starting point to the last one, glancing down at the letters. "And?"

"They are all from the same man. He wants the car. Badly."

"Badly enough to kidnap Larry? For a car?" He looked up to verify that he was talking to Megan the profiler and not Megan the girlfriend.

He found an agent on a mission.

They shared a small smile. They had a lead. "Let's find this guy."

Larry shifted for the hundredth time in the last half an hour.

Colby held back a sigh. It wouldn't do anybody any good.

Suddenly Larry spoke up: "Do we have a bottle or anything else to catch ..."

Frowning in confusion, Colby couldn't follow Larry's thoughts. "What?"

"I need to go and don't want to waste -"

Then he got it. He relaxed again thanking the Army for this training. He hadn't ever thought that he would need it seeing as, well, he was most decidedly not in the Navy. But he still he had to learn it, and learn it he did.

"Professor, you don't drink urine in any situation where water supply is limited."

"But we should at least -" Embarrassment pinked the bridge of his nose and gave him the look of a little lost school boy.

"If you drink urine, you take in so many minerals that your body needs more water to clean it up again. It is actually harmful and worsens your situation."

"Oh,…" Larry scratched his head. "Where did you obtains this useful information?"

"Army Survival Manual. Required reading material." Colby rolled to his left taking the jacket with him.

The professor was confused until he understood that he had been given some privacy to relieve himself.

Colby talked as if they were sharing a normal breakfast. "We can try to fish. The water around their eyes is usually suitable for hydration. We have a pocket knife, and I can maybe improvise a fishing line."

Larry washed his hands in the ocean water. He knew that he should never drink it, but after a few hours it already looked appealing.

Maybe the fish was a good idea. "Your Army Survival Manual is certainly an interesting read. What else do you know?"

*******

"Okay. Our two guys, Marc Samuelson and Ronny Shawn, are not the brightest."

David entered the conference room briskly. The little sleep he had gotten was now paying off enormously.

"We did catch them. On tape," Don pointed out.

"Yeah, but this is even better." He grinned and held up a file. "One of their receipts they had lying around was for payment of their rent. They paid it with a credit card that was not their own. They had stolen it. We wouldn't have known about it without the receipt. Guess what else they have bought with it?"

"Sleeping pills?" Don guessed.

David nodded. "They bought enough to put a rhinoceros down. But that's not the best part."

Megan laid down her profile about the letters, putting down her glasses. "What is the best part?"

"They confessed to stealing the card," David paused for effect, "from their mysterious employer." He held up his file again. "And the card belongs to Richard Dumont."

Don straightened in his chair, but Megan leaped from hers entirely. "That's the guy who wants Larry's car."

On David's nod, Don also got to his feet. "Okay. Let's bring him in. Megan, you stay here and find out what else he's been buying. Maybe even a boat."

He grabbed his phone, thinking about which DA to call this early in the morning to ask for a warrant. His thumb hovered over Nadine's number as he felt Megan's stare.

"Don-" she started.

"No." He lowered his cell, already knowing he would call Robin. She would know what he needed, and she would stop him if he was wrong.

Sometimes you needed people to stop you from making a mistake.

He lowered his voice, trying to convey his sympathy. "There are a lot of good reasons to destroy your career. Richard Dumont isn't one of them."

Megan stared at him for a moment longer. Then she nodded.

David and Don hurried from the room. He would call Robin en route.

They had no time to lose.

* * *

_tbc_


	4. Chapter Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to ancientmaverick for beta reading. All remaining mistakes are my own.

David watched through the glass. While Don may have prevented Megan from taking part in the arrest, he had no problem letting her do the actual interrogation.

For a man they suspected to be behind Larry and Colby's abduction, he seemed harmless, incapable of doing such a thing.

If he'd been walking down the street, he wouldn't have given Mister Dumont a second glance. The man was the very definition of bland.

Of course, Colby also hadn't expected to be in danger just bringing files to CalSci. For all he had a dangerous job and dangerous friends, he was now in danger simply because he knew Larry. Larry, the last person you expected to be associated with danger. David wasn't sure he'd have stood a chance, even with two working arms. It just seemed so unfair.

Don came in. "And?"

"Megan knows what she's doing. Anything new?"

"He owns several boats and rents out space in different harbors. We're looking into it. You?"

"Mr. Dumont has a lot of parking and speeding tickets. He drives a lot."

"He owns a lot of cars," Don countered. "He should drive them. Did you see his garage?"

David snorted. "What he called a garage, my entire neighborhood could fit into."

Don shook his head. "That's LA for you."

Inside the interrogation room, Megan stalked around the table.

"He should have sold. I would have paid a good price," Dumont repeated his defense. He had never denied being after Larry's car, but he denied being responsible for any fate that had befallen him.

"Mister Dumont," Robin said leaning back in her chair and crossing her legs. "How do you plan to drive a car, or to even see a car for that matter, while you're in federal lock-up."

He smiled. "I won't go to jail," he answered with arrogance only money could buy.

"No, you'll go to prison."

His smile grew. "If I talk to you now, I'll never get the 1931 Ford Model A. So ..."

"Actually", Megan drew the word out while she pulled out a sheet of paper and held it in front of Dumont. "You'll never see this car either way. This is Larry Fleinhardt's last will and testament. That car will be mine. And you can bet I'm not selling."

Slowly Dumont's smile faded. If Larry's disappearance had been his plan to get the car, it was failing.

"And here is another paper for you," Robin leaned forward and also put a sheet of paper in front of him. "It's a statistical overview of sentences for the abduction and murder of federal agents."

Megan smirked as Robin's words hit their mark. A bucket of cold water couldn't have worked better.

Dumont paled and started to shake. "There was never any murder planned. And I don't know anything about a federal agent. You have to believe me. This is all their fault."

"Of course." Robin smiled tolerably. "It's Ronny Shawn and Marc Samuelson who paid you. No, wait. You paid them. "

"Really. I told them to leave the man in the middle of the ocean for a day or two, and then I would have rescued him. As a thank you present, he would have sold me his car."

Megan narrowed her eyes dangerously. "Rescue? After you left him in the middle of the ocean?"

Dumont glanced to her, suddenly detecting the danger he was in. He spoke faster, hoping to prevent the damage her expression promised. "I gave them the keys to a new boat. Complete with a tracker, GPS, water, and enough food for days. They were only supposed to disable the engine. The professor would have been fine, and I could have found him whenever I thought it was a good time just by following the signal."

Megan pushed herself off the table.

After a reassuring glance to Megan, Robin asked, "What went wrong?"

"These idiots put the man in the dinghy and disabled it. Then they drove back with my boat. They were supposed to leave with the dinghy. None of this would have happened if they had done what they were supposed to do."

Don shared a surprised look with David.

David rubbed at his forehead. "If they had stuck to the plan, Colby would have called me at three o'clock in the morning to get him from the harbor and arrest these guys," he concluded. "And now he may never return just because ..." He trailed off.

Don pressed his lips together. There were no words for this.

Inside the interrogation room, Robin had no problem to find words. She put down her pencil and stood up.

"You're wrong, Mister Dumont. None of this would have happened if you knew how to take no for an answer."

*******

The sun stood high in the sky. Colby and Larry had tried to protect their heads, but the sun was merciless and burned like fire. Their conversation had fizzled out. It took too much energy to think, let alone speak.

"What do you think we are going to die from?" Larry asked.

Or not, Colby thought. Even breathing hurt. He had taken his last pain meds a long time ago. His shoulder pulsated in sync with his heartbeat. The hot sun was worsening everything.

He answered with the first thing that came to mind. "You ended that sentence with a preposition."

He wished back the coldness of the night. But his watch wasn't moving fast enough to even think about the next night. At first, they had hoped for another ship or boat, but there was nothing and the heat made moving and hoping impossible

"I don't think one can die from a grammatical mistake," Larry said.

Colby snorted.

"The sun is already frying your brain."

*******

David whistled in awe. "No wonder they took this back. This isn't a boat; this is a yacht."

"Let's start searching." Megan jumped on board the poorly named 'Serendipity'. It sure hadn't brought anybody luck.

Don and David followed together with men from the Harbor Police.

After Mister Dumont had fully understood the situation, he had willingly given them the location of his yacht and everything he knew. But honestly, he didn't really know much more than Samuelson and Shawn. He couldn't know where Larry and Colby were and this was the only thing the team had been interested in.

Their clock was ticking, and Don still didn't have enough data to call Charlie.

"Dinghy is missing," David reported and disappeared again to continue searching.

"Water and food is in the fridge," Megan explained as she returned from the cabin. "But there is no sign of either Colby or Larry."

"This is good. No sign also means no blood and no dead body," Don pointed out as he stared at the horizon. Somewhere out there, two friends were in real danger of dying, and he was still without a search pattern.

"I got a log." David came around the side carrying loose papers. "This thing even has a printer to print routes and data."

"Call Charlie and give him what he needs."

A new voice spoke up. "Actually, you don't need to call me. I'm already here."

Don swirled around while Megan started to smile.

"Good. Come on." He held out his hand and helped his brother and Amita on board.

"What do you need?" Megan asked.

Apparently, she and Charlie were back to being good friends going by the smile they shared.

"Amita, do you have-?" Charlie half-turned to his girlfriend.

"The weather report and current maps from the Pacific?" She held up her laptop. "Yes I have."

The yacht was big enough to get lost on, but they found the bridge easily enough.

"What do you need?" David echoed unknowingly Megan's question.

"If this ship has a GPS log, only this." Charlie pointed to the monitor and its information.

Don took a deep breath. It was time to call the Coast Guard again. He could maybe reach a person allowed to make a decision just in time for Charlie's resulting search pattern.

*******

"Houston, we've got a problem."

Colby's commanding and worried voice awoke a dozing Larry. He raised his head and blinked at the agent through swollen lids. "I don't want to hear these words. I don't remember all the security protocols. This is a bad time for a check. I promise, I won't fall asleep again."

"I mean it, Professor. We have a problem."

His voice was urgent enough that Larry sat up. "What problem?"

"We're losing air and taking on water."

Larry paused. He surely had misheard. "What?"

"We have a leak," Colby repeated.

Then Larry began to feel the cool water around his ankles. He moved his feet and listened to accompany splashing. "This is worthy of a Houston call. If we lose the dinghy … " He grabbed his head. "I don't even want to think about it."

The lost air reduced their sea level. Every wave brought new water.

"Thank you for the observation, professor," Colby snarled. "Do you have any idea?"

Looking around, Larry tried to get his brain in gear. The dehydration made thinking hard. In peak condition, he was sure he would have an idea right away. "We need to find the leak. Maybe we can plug it."

By now, he could feel the water everywhere. It felt cool now, but soon enough the salt would burn on his sensitive skin.

"Start by getting the water back out. I'm thinking," he ordered as Colby watched, as fascinated as Larry the slowly deflating dinghy and the rising water

"How I am supposed to get water out with no tools and only one working arm?"

Trying to use his right arm was out of question. Every breath vibrated though his shoulder, threatening to reduce him to a whimpering ball of agony. The only reprieve he got was while lying still and not breathing. If he had been attentive, he would have seen the danger earlier.

"I'll think about one problem, you think about the other, please."

This seemed to do the trick. Colby suddenly had an idea. He started to fight with his right shoe. After several tries, he could pull it off. Kneeling, he started to scoop the water out.

"Professor. You need to think faster."

Larry nodded to himself. Yes this would be advisable. This problem should be solvable with first grade physics. Air pressure should make either a noise or be perceptible.

He ran his hand along the smooth surface. Suddenly he felt a faint air breeze.

"There." He pointed to the leak.

"There what?" Colby sat up. He pressed his right arm against his chest, taking deep breaths.

"I found the leak."

Together they stared at their possible death sentence. It was a three-centimeter long rip of the seam.

They watched with dangerous fascination as air slowly leaked with a soft whistle. The sun and dehydration were slowly impacting their ability for rational thoughts.

"And can you repair it?" Colby asked.

"I know what kind of work should be done but lack the talent for manual labor."

"So let me. What needs to be done?"

"We need to seal the seam." Larry said. "But we are without the necessary tools."

"What tools?"

"Usually, you would glue a leaky seam." The next shop to buy glue was so far away it wasn't even worth to calculate.

"Glue?"

"You can either close directly the leak with glue or create a seal."

Colby looked around trying to find something that matched Larry's description.

Again, Colby cursed his sling. Without his injured shoulder, this wouldn't have happened. He stared at his sling. Suddenly he knew the solution. It was only fair that the thing that had gotten him into this mess was the very thing to help him now.

"Polypropylene."

"What?"

Without answering, Colby grabbed the pocket knife and pressed it into Larry's hand.

"Take the knife and saw off a longish part of the straps of my sling."

Larry narrowed his eyes, so Colby explained: "The straps of my sling are manufactured from polypropylene, you can either sew this or you melt it with heat. The sun should be hot enough if we, or better you, use my sunglasses to pool its energy. It will hopefully glue to the rubber of the boat-"

"-sealing the leak." Larry understood. He gave Colby the cut off strap and took the sunglasses. After he dried the rubber with the handkerchief, they started to work.

Colby held the part of the strap while Larry worked at angling the boat and glasses correctly with the sun.

They hold their breaths.

It worked.

Exhausted, they sat back down in the dinghy in a swallow pool of water.

"You know, I bet together we could actually be MacGyver. You have the brain, and I bring the muscle," Colby proposed.

Larry shook his head. "No, MacGyver is a useless fantasy. None of his projects would have ever worked. Beside I can't run as fast as you."

Colby laughed. "You're still far faster than a supercomputer – my only other option." He started again to scoop out the water ignoring the surprised look on Larry's face.

Then Larry joined his attempt to clear the dinghy. They worked together in the heat trying to the level the rubber dinghy again.

Their trousers were glued to their skin, and the salt burnt on their underarms. After several minutes of hard work, they had cleared the dinghy.

Lying back to save energy, Colby could already feel the water from the next wave.

"This will not hold completely or for long, but we should sink at a slower rate," Larry sighed.

"If this gives us enough time for a rescue, I am all for it."

"Unfortunately, we will only have saved minutes, not hours."

Colby nodded. "I guess they have to hurry then."

*******

Charlie clapped his hands together, startling the team. "Okay, I -"

Amita coughed.

"Sorry, we," Charlie corrected himself, "have a location."

David pumped his fist, and Don almost saw a 'finally' on his lips. But it also could be that he only saw what he himself had been thinking.

"Based on the assumed point where they put the dinghy in the water -" Charlie continued.

"-the weather, current and time," Amita added and started to pull up a map on the monitor, "we need to search-"

"-somewhere around here." Together they pointed to area out in the open sea far away from the usual shipping routes.

Don, David, and Megan all leaned in to take a closer look and to read the coordinates.

"Okay, let's go." Megan pushed her way to the start key and grabbed it.

"Wait." Don held up his hand. "We can't take this boat."

Megan stared at him, trying to determine if he was really trying to get between her and a possible rescue of Larry. This was both dangerous and brave. "What?"

"It's evidence. And too slow."

David stepped out of the bridge. He also wanted to save Colby, but there had to be another solution.

"It's a high speed boat," Megan argued. "The Coast Guard is going to take ages to get here. We … Larry doesn't have the time."

Amita and Charlie carefully stepped backwards out of the bridge. They had done everything they could.

"I know, but the Coast Guard is already on its way. I'll give them Charlie's search pattern and they will find them long before we are even near," Don said.

Suddenly, a loud engine could be heard.

Megan looked up, trying to identify the source of the sound.

Don smiled. "And we will be on that Coast Guard ship because a chopper is even faster."

David released a breath. He shouldn't have expected anything else. Don wouldn't sit back and wait.

"Let's go."

A chopper was fast and the Coast Guard was already informed. But would this be enough?

David prayed that they would be in time.

* * *

 

_tbc_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please don't try this at home. It's not going to work, it's a MacGyver thing - could work, but it's not so simple.


	5. Chapter Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to ancientmaverick for beta reading. All remaining mistakes are my own.

Colby kept his eyes closed and covered by his only working arm. His right arm tingled, but as long as he didn't move, it stayed quiet. And Colby wasn't planning to move. Ever. Again.

Currently they were still staying afloat. This had to be enough.

His lips hurt more than his shoulder, but he didn't have any moisture left to wet them.

Larry wasn't fairing any better. He had never spent so much time in the sun. His tongue was glued to the top of his mouth, and every breath vibrated in his head like a big drum and orchestra.

"Colby! Colby!"

The man in question shook his head. No, he wasn't going to answer again. If they wanted him to stay alive, they needed to let him rest and save energy.

He kept his face hidden even as a loud splash of water startled him. Maybe it was a shark. But he simply wasn't interested anymore.

Trying to remember if sharks were a possibility, Colby forgot what he had been thinking about.

Suddenly the dinghy swayed. Colby jerked. Sharks wouldn't jump in a boat, would they?

He felt water drops on his over-heated face, and somebody tugged at his arm.

"What?"

"He's alive," a loud voice screamed. Colby turned away. Everything was too loud and too hot.

"So is the other one," the same loud voice announced.

Maybe he should check if the shark was gone. He blinked his eyes open. Above him a big crab with a human face stared down at him. Colby shook his head. On second glance, he recognized the red as a life jacket. No crab, then.

The human crab smiled down.

Colby closed his eyes again. Coast Guard meant something good. Even if he couldn't remember just at that moment what it did mean. But at least it wasn't a shark.

"Larry?" He tried to form words around his swollen tongue.

"The professor is fine, Agent," the voice reassured him.

"Th's good."

After a lot of shaking and shoving, he was suddenly airborne and moving fast. Before his hand could grab a steady part, the moving stopped. His hand flailed around.

Suddenly, a hand caught his. "You're okay. We've got you. We've got you."

He knew that voice. As recognition sat in, he let his eyes close again. If David was around, it was safe to rest.

*******

"Charlie, stay here." Don pulled his brother away from the reeling and turned him toward the wardroom where they could and should stay.

Before he could remind his brother again about his promises to stay out of the way, Don was interrupted by Megan and David. They had jumped up and run to the railing the moment the first basket came up.

"David, let the people work. They do actually know what they are doing."

He grabbed his agent and pulled him away from the paramedics tending to Colby.

Colby looked bad, but Don had long ago learned to judge a medical situation by the reaction of the person with medical training and not his own impression.

The paramedics were focused, but they didn't hurry. Colby would be fine. Anything else was unimaginable.

Forbidden memories surfaced from another boat and Colby and the real possibility of death hovering around. Don shared a knowing look with David. He wasn't the only one with this particular memory.

He raised his eyes to find Megan watching the little entourage going inside the medical bay, preparing to follow.

"Megan, come on. You've seen Larry for yourself. He is fine. They are fine. Come on."

The men of the Coast Guard secured their own dinghy and confiscated the dinghy containing Colby and Larry as evidence for the FBI. There would be a lot of paperwork in Don's near future.

Then the engines started again, and the ships returned to the bay without any order or word from Don.

Don didn't like to be sidelined. His team wasn't doing much better. They had all wandered off, but Don didn't need his investigative skills to find them. He just had to follow the annoyed faces and raised voices. These marked a path all the way to the medical bay.

"Remind me why I brought you all with me if you can't stay out of the way?"

Charlie looked up from the head of Larry's cot. "I needed to be here in case I had to refine my calculations."

David had pressed himself into the farthest corner. He had crossed his arms as he watched over his friends. "I know Colby the best. I'd know what he would do in case Charlie needed an answer."

Megan smirked. "Same for me with Larry."

Don laughed and threw up his hands. "Yeah, yeah. I am going to have to go apologize for all of you."

But he wouldn't mind. If the Captain of the Coast Guard boat had a problem with it, she wouldn't hesitate to tell him. But at the end of the day, they were all just relieved that they had found them alive and in time.

It was a miracle, only possible because everybody had done his or her very best, to retain hope, to find a lead, to do math, and to stay alive. Maybe some prayers were answered.

He looked around from one agent to his brother, to Larry, and back to his agents. Bradford was right. He had a fine team.

*******

 

"Didn't I just pick you up from the hospital?" David asked as the hospital doors closed behind Colby.

Colby smirked and shook his head. "How could I have known that it would be so dangerous to know a professor of astrophysics?"

David laughed. Then he got serious. "So what's the verdict?"

"Drink water, rest, anti-inflammatories, and pain killers," Colby rattled off the list. By the way his muscles ached and every step hurt, he had every intention to do exactly as prescribed.

David's smile didn't change; instead, it grew.

"What?" Colby growled and stopped tugging at his sling.

"I have no doubt you'll be bored in no time." He rattled his keys. "But I don't think Don is going to let you help again."

Snorting, Colby rubbed his stubble. It would be a challenge to shave left-handed. But he didn't dispute David's assessment.

"How's Larry?" David asked.

Colby turned around and indicated his friend with the tip of his chin. "Ask him yourself."

Amita and Charlie trailed behind Larry. Together, they made their way to the parking lot. Colby and David caught up to them.

"How are you, Larry?" David asked after they had greeted each other.

"Confused. Is it true that my demise was wished by a collector of classic cars?"

Colby laughed. He had grilled David already the day before for all the details. He wouldn't have believed it if he hadn't lived it.

"Yes. Richard Dumont wanted to have your car by any means necessary. But don't worry, he and his henchmen are going away for a long time. Robin is going to ensure this."

"I guess he would have respected my beauty; I am just worried about the effect the living conditions in a prison like a museum would have on the spirit of the car."

David raised his eyebrows. "I don't think your car would have to suffer in Mister Dumont's possession. His garage is spacious enough and he drove his cars a lot." He kept his tone serious despite the laughter on Amita's and Charlie's faces.

"I suppose that's good." Larry scratched the healing skin on his face where he had the worst sunburn.

The 1931 Model A stood out on CalSci, and it also stood out in the parking lot of the hospital.

Larry stopped as he saw his car.

A lot of stares found their way to it. Or perhaps to the woman standing respectfully beside it.

"Larry," Megan greeted with a smile and a quick speck on his check. "I brought you your car, so you can see yourself that she's fine."

"Oh my," Larry walked around the car while carefully inspecting it.

Colby shook his head. "I can't believe I almost died for a car. A car!"

"It's because you don't see the art in the function. This is not a car; it's driven elegance," Megan said with a serious face. David prudently stepped back.

"Still a car. What happened to a bus full of children? Or world peace? Or national security?"

Larry paused in front of the little group. Amita and Charlie hung back, reassured in the normal banter and healthy behavior of their friends. Everything would be fine.

Resting his hand friendly on Colby's healthy shoulder, Larry added his wisdom. "There is an old saying: to save a life is to save the world. It doesn't matter if it is a school child or an old man like me. It's the mind set that values life more than almost anything else. This is what saves the world and ensures its peace. If we would all do it more, we would go in a brighter future. Or was it the past we would change?" Larry tilted his head thinking.

Before Colby could cover up his embarrassment at the unexpected compliment, Larry helped him out with this too by starting to scratch his healing skin again.

"Don't," Megan advised and grabbed his hand holding it. "You're only making it worse. As somebody who would fall asleep in the sun, I know."

Suddenly Don came around the parked cars. "I thought my dad would throw a party in his garden and not the parking lot of the hospital."

"Alan is preparing a party?" Larry let his arm, on its way to scratching again, sinking. "This is unexpected."

Charlie patted his old friend on the back. "Larry, you better believe that there will be a party. And you're invited. So we would be happy if you could come."

Larry gave a half nod. It was as much as commitment as they could hope for.

"What are you doing here?" Charlie asked his brother to allow Larry his peace.

"How do you think Megan got to Larry's car and will now be able to go back to work? I don't know about you math guys, but the FBI has work to do." He gave all of his agents a long look. Even Colby was included. "So, how long till you're back?"

"Are you missing me already?"

"Nah, take your time. You deserve it. I just need to know how long I have to worry." Don said with a straight face.

Colby raised his eyebrow.

"Man," David explained, "you haven't picked up as many injuries on the job as you did on your first day of medical leave."

Now that the danger had passed and all the injuries would heal, they all could agree how unlikely and ludicrous the whole thing had been.

"Ha ha ha," Colby grouched as everybody else shared a smile.

"Of course, I could ask our resident math genius for a probability for this," Don started and looked at his brother. "But he would turn it around and calculate a probability for all of us."

Charlie tilted his head in thought. "It wouldn't be difficult to -"

Don held up his hand. "And I don't want to know these numbers."

Amita laughed as Charlie smirked. He would run the numbers. Just because.

"Megan, I thank you for your thoughtful gesture," Larry started and pointed at his car. "But now I have urgent matters to attend."

"What would be so urgent, Larry? Shouldn't you go - " Amita stopped. She wasn't sure where Larry was currently staying. She looked to Megan who just smiled. "... and ... and rest?" Amita stammered without finding the resolution to the implied question.

"This is the common advice, but I first truly do have important matters to attend," Larry said and turned to Colby. "Agent Granger, I hereby offer you my services to drive you home in a classic car that can evoke such a greed that we were almost killed for it."

For a moment, everybody expected a good comeback or joke and held their breaths. But then Colby just nodded. "Sounds good."

Together they watched silently, fascinated as Larry drove off with Colby as passenger.

"I'd never thought I'd see that," Amita stated.

"Stranger things have happened," Don mused and turned to his car to follow them. They wouldn't get far before they had to switch to more comfortable cars, but it was the thought that counted.

"Yeah, like what?" David asked, playing with his remote. He had planned to drive his friend home. This time he would stay there. He even had Don's permission.

"Charlie and I," Don answered, "If you'd have told me ten years ago that Charlie would consult with math on my cases, I'd have laughed you out of the building."

"And now you have your own thoughts about where math could be applied," Charlie finished. A small and proud smile tugged at his lips.

Don caught his eyes. "Like I said, stranger things have happened."

Then his face turned serious. "Come on. We've got work to do."

**THE END**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!


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